Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Gardens

I am not expecting to see inspiring gardens on this trip, since formal French gardens do not move me, and that's what we'll encounter. Nevertheless, here are a few pictures from the Tuileries Gardens. I was surprised to see irises blooming in late October. Otherwise, these borders, surrounding perfectly placed and clipped lavender bushes, were filled with cosmos, enormous marigolds, salvias, and dahlias in shades of pink and purple.

Part of the gardens are filled with these trees in perfect lines. No grass or anything else dares to grow between them. They rise straight up out of the dry soil like soldiers.

Some of the dahlias that were in full and delicious bloom.

I suspected and confirmed with French Google that this is a castor bean plant. But I don't remember these incredible seedheads.

Here's a better view of the whole plant.

A view of one of the beds, filled with salvia, cosmos, etc. You can see the pleached (?) row of trees in the background, forming a hedge around the Tuileries. I wonder what it looks like after the leaves have fallen.

This was a beautiful afternoon, coolish but with a low sun that warmed us up. We strolled through here after a nice lunch at Angelina's, full of omelette and chocolate. It was perfect for sitting and watching the people, or perhaps closing one's eyes behind the sunglasses.